10.30.2012

For nearly five miles yesterday my face and body were pummeled by strong, chilly winds. I had trouble (and still do) understanding why if I ran out and back from our apartment the wind would be in my face for the whole run.

So I did what any social media obsessed person might do in this situation and I took my question to Facebook. The answers I got, many citing Chicago's "Windy City" nickname, inspired today's newbie nugget.

While Chicago is widely known today as the "Windy City," the nickname's origin has long been a subject of speculation.

Did you know... The nickname "Windy City" has both literal and metaphorical roots?

Those outside the city believe the nickname is based solely on the blustery conditions of Chicago. And with good reason. Between it's flat prairie landscape, proximity to Lake Michigan and towering, wind-tunnel creating skyscrapers, Chicago is indeed windy.

But I wasn't in Chicago for long before I began to hear and read about an alternate explanation. This one is much more widely recognized by both locals and Chicago history buffs and points toward a more metaphorical read of the word windy. Seems some in history have suggested that Chicagoans and most notably their politicians are windy, long winded or perhaps full of hot air.

Popular belief is that New York Sun editor Charles A. Dana popularized the moniker in the midst of the heated competition to host the 1893 World's Fair. However, this incredibly informative and convincing Chicago Tribune article suggests that Chicago was referred to as the Windy City years earlier. Journalist Nathan Bierma cites an article in the Cincinnati Enquirer on May 9, 1876. It's author called Chicago the Windy City both literally (there had just been a damaging wind storm) and disparagingly (sort of trash talking between local rivals).

If you've spent any time in Chicago there's no denying the literal interpretation of the nickname. I've often found myself horizontal from the waist down trying to run or even walk into a powerful head wind. Wind here is no. joke. But the metaphorical definition isn't so hard to accept either. In fact, I would argue that this blog is a perfect example of why I have fit in perfectly.

If you're a Chicagoan, have you heard both interpretations of the nickname?

If you aren't, does your city have a nickname with an interesting back story? Do tell.

10.26.2012

Last weekend my very sweet friend Cameron visited Chicago! It was a trip we've both been looking forward to since we hugged goodbye in Chattanooga last January.

We spent a LOT of time eating. I mean, a LOT of time eating. We also made 3 trips to the Disney store. (Cameron has been compared to a real life Disney Princess because of her rosey outlook on life) With the time left over, we scoured the city in search of Divergent locations.

Both Cameron and I read and loved Veronica Roth's books (Divergent and Insurgent).

Yep. Happiness is having a friend that you can read young adult dystopian fiction with and then obsessively discuss it and hunt down the book's locations while on vacation.

Happiness is also having a husband willing to join you on your adventure and take goofy pictures...

re-enacting the elevator scene at the merciless mart

ready to zip-line off the hancock

we rode the ferris wheel instead of climbing it while playing capture the flag

we avoided the hub like the plague

looking for Caleb at "the bean" and the erudite headquarters

Even though we have facebook and phone calls and plenty of text messages to keep us connected, it was really fun to get to share a few uninterrupted days together. I'm incredibly thankful for Cameron's friendship and for the memories that were made during last weekend's visit.

Nothing like a little bit of sentimental sappiness to start the weekend off right, right?

After spending five years in the bible belt where "fall festivals" were more prevalent than the campy celebration of ghouls and goblins, I'm pretty excited to see how Chicago (ya bunch of heathens) does All Hallows' Eve.

I doubt we'll be inundated with trick or treaters since we're living in an apartment building. (more candy for us!) So it looks like we'll need a different way to celebrate than fattening up panhandling munchkins.

From Friday October 26th to Tuesday the 30th, there will be a gaggle of events in Franken Plaza. (aka Daley Plaza) They're promising costume contests, magic shows, hay rides, hot apple cider and performances by Midnight Circus. Not sure who Midnight Circus is? Neither was I.

The Midnight Circus encompasses performers who hail from all over the globe but now make their homes in Chicago—actors and acrobats, aerialists and eccentrics, clowns and contortionists, singers, dancers, musicians, and a lone dog. Though our talents are varied, we are united by a passion for community, a commitment to artistry, and a shared vision for bringing together our diverse art forms to create something exciting, accessible, and uniquely urban.

10.24.2012

As someone who has made no secret of her devotion to the Chicago dog I am always excited to discover new hot dog stands to add to my ever-growing "must try" list.

Which begs the question, just how many hot dog stands are in Chicagoland?

I was pretty astounded to hear the answer.

Did you know... there are 2,000+ hot dog stands in Chicago?

I learned this little tidbit of information on our Chicago Food Planet Tour a few weeks ago. I had to pick my jaw up off the floor when our plucky tour guide rattled off the fact.

It seems my quest to discover the best hot dog in Chicago just might become a lifetime quest. Some quick math tells me I would need to eat a hot dog a day for five and half years to get to every single one. Since I'm not sure a hot dog a day sounds like the wisest plan, I might have to come up with a different strategy.

Perhaps one hot dog a week for the next thirty-eight and a half years is a better goal to shoot for?

10.22.2012

As temperatures continue to drop and colorful leaves begin to fall, a warm cup of coffee sounds delicious and inviting. Chicago has a vibrant and varied craft coffee scene and a now there's a tour company to introduce us to it. Are you ready to go on a Caffenture?

I connected with Jenn Chen a.k.a. "The Coffee Girl" a few weeks ago on Twitter. We were both participating in a Chicago Ideas Week tweet chat and @Caffentures reached out to say, "Hello." It wasn't long before she invited me to join her for a "caffeinated adventure." (get it? get it? "caffeinated adventure!" Cute, right?)

Chen started Caffentures earlier this year as a way to share her knowledge and love of Chicago's specialty coffee scene. Each crawl provides a unique experience for its participants with a minimum of three caffeinated stops and a tasty educational adventure with a coffee professionals. As described on the Caffentures website, "You typically can not buy this experience in any of these coffee shops."

Last week, I had the chance to attend a Red Line Crawl*. We started our adventure at Intelligentsia Broadway. There, our host Charlie helped us to begin to better understand our palates by offering us some acid.

No. Not that kind.

We tried five different food grade acids to identify the barely distinguishable to my palate differences. At this point it became clear that my palate and I have a lot to learn. This could have been an intimidating experience if hosted by an uppity, hoity-toity crew. Instead they made it challenging, informative and enjoyable. We also tried two bright and distinctive Intelligentsia coffees (Kangocho Kenya and Debello, Ethiopia) in order to begin to recognize flavor notes.

Soooo, I couldn't really. But I was encouraged that this wasn't uncommon. It takes time, practice and concentration to begin to develop this skill. It definitely made me want to begin to refine my palate and keep learning.

Next up, Ch'ava cafe. Here we were introduced to the difference the brewing method makes in your cup of coffee. We started with Intelligentsia roasted Karatina Kenya Peaberries. The shop's expert barristas brewed the beans using a Clover and a Chemex. (...and were very game for a photo shoot)

It was fascinating to me how two cups of the same type of coffee could taste so different. We were treated to a discussion about brewing methods and once again I was amazed with the care and detail that is taken to create (what I thought) was a simple cup of coffee. At Ch'ava, providing you with the perfect cup of coffee falls somewhere between a mad science experiment and a moving work of art.

We made our last stop of the day at Metropolis Coffee Company. Here we got to watch as a small batch of beans went from green (Did you know they're originally green? I told you I'm a coffee newbie.) to that familiar deep, rich brown. Not only was the Metropolis crew incredibly informative, they were entertaining and fun as well. It's clear they love what they do.

We ended the day with a traditional "cupping." (that's what coffee types - and now I - call a coffee tasting) It was a full sensory experience, another opportunity to challenge our taste buds and enough to fully convince me that I'm ready to learn a lot more about this caffeinated world.

I would highly recommend the Caffentures experience to a casual coffee drinker like myself or to a more experienced and knowledgeable coffee aficionado. All the coffee professionals combined both basic and more advanced information to ensure everyone was entertained and challenged. They were open for questions and definitely didn't exude that "I'm too cool for school" vibe I feared I'd encounter.

It is important to note that the tour ended up being four hours instead of the advertised three. Because of the interactive nature of the activities, several conversations and question/answer session went a bit long. This ended up putting us a little bit behind. I'm not certain if this is something that happens regularly or if we were just a chatty bunch.

All in all, it was a great chance to get to visit a few new-to-me coffee shops, learn more than I imagined I ever would about coffee and wet my appetite to learn more soon.

If you're interested in participating in a Caffenture - there is a Blue Line crawl happening this Sunday (October 28th). Visit the Caffentures website for more information and to reserve your spot!

How's your palate? Can you pick out distinctive flavor notes in a cup of coffee?

Or are you a casual drinker (curious to learn more) like me?

*Caffentures was generous enough to provide a complimentary ticket to the Red Line Crawl. But I can assure you all opinions in this post are mine and mine alone.

c. As a Saint (blog post on that to come...) I got to volunteer during a production of Freud's Last Session. The play is a fictionalized account of a meeting between C.S. Lewis and Freud just before his suicide. Two brilliant men. Two radically different world views. One fascinating production.

10.18.2012

Admittedly, I've always been a bigger fan of baseball than football. But we lived in SEC territory for five years and now we're less than a mile from Soldier Field. It sort of feels like somebody is trying to convince me to reconsider.

I'll tell you one thing that would help, some cute Bears gear to wear to an upcoming game. Soldier Field is an open-air stadium and I'm not sure if you've heard but it can get pretty chilly in Chicago during football season. Not only would these pieces look good, they would most definitely come in handy.

This Monday night, the Bears play the Detroit Lions (right, Karen?) at 7:30 at Soldier Field. Our neighborhood should be hopping. It doesn't look like the temperature is going to drop low enough (or that I'm going to have a ticket) to make these a necessity. But that means I have a little bit of time to collect all three pieces before my first Bears game.

10.17.2012

We've been on several tours and heard several anecdotes about the architecture and history of Chicago. One of my favorite tour stories is the one I heard about the land beneath Lake Point Tower.

Here's the legend: For years there was an ordinance against construction east of Lake Shore Drive. When development began on Lake Point Tower it created quite the hubbub. In the ensuing court case, the construction was allowed to proceed because of a very "Chicago" technicality.

The wording of the original ordinance forbade construction on land East of LSD. Turns out the plot intended for Lake Point Tower is actually landfill. So construction was permitted and the ordinance was quickly changed to prevent this from happening again. Crazy, right? Crazy enough to make a great story.

a unique view of the city skyline

Regardless of how or why the construction was allowed to happen, Lake Point Tower is a stunning building with gorgeous, unique views (as the only building East of LSD) and a few very special amenities. Last weekend, as a part of Open House Chicago 2012, we had a chance to see parts of the building for ourselves.

Excuse my wind blown, humidity ravaged hair.

On the 70th floor you'll find the breathtaking Cité. It's a fine dining restaurant with 360º views and a menu that had my mouth watering. There's an incredibly reasonably priced Chef's tasting menu that I can't wait to get into my tummy. (Hubby, are you paying attention?)

The building also boasts one of the first (perhaps THE first) roof gardens in Chicago. Designed originally by landscape architect Alfred Caldwell, Skyline Park is currently in the midst of a major renovation. Staying true to Caldwell's original design the condominium association has commissioned Hitchcock Design group to not only restore the existing park, but implement the east half of Caldwell's plan that, for budgetary reasons, was never completed before.

Even under construction, the park is site to behold. I look forward to seeing the finished product.

oh how I love stacked stone...

Completed in 1968, Lake Point Tower was the tallest apartment building at the time. Despite being more than 40 years old it's graceful curves and clean lines keep it looking modern and fresh. Architects John Heinrich and George Schipporeit were students of Mies van der Rohe. The innovative rounded three arm design (see the whole building here) ensures that no apartment is looking directly into its neighboring unit but still ensures that each unit has a spectacular view.

Unfortunately, none of the residents of the building were willing to let us traipse through his or her home to check it out. (though we tried - no we didn't - what if we would have?!?) But after our visit last weekend, the hubby and I have have definitely not crossed this building off our "what if we could live THERE someday" list.

10.15.2012

The rain didn't stop us. Umbrellas in hand, we made sure we didn't miss this weekend's Open House Chicago.

Though we didn't quite make it to all 150 available buildings, but we were excited for the chance to visit quite a few. We spent Saturday visiting the interiors of several of the Prarie Avenue Mansions in our neighborhood. All those servants quarters made our afternoon feel like an American version of Downton Abbey.

Then, on Sunday, we headed North. First stop: Tribune Tower.

A Taste of Chicago's Architectural Diversity

Completed in 1925 this neo-gothic skyscraper was commissioned as a celebration of the Chicago Tribune's 75th birthday. New York architects John Mead Howells and Raymond Hood won the opportunity to design the building in an international design contest that included a $100,000 prize. (in 1920s $$$!!!)

The neo-gothic style was chosen because it is most often associated with cathedrals. This building was meant to be not only the most beautiful and distinctive office building in the world, but it was also intended to pay homage and exhibit reverence to freedom of speech and freedom of the press.

The newspaper is an institution developed by modern civilization to present the news of the day, to foster commerce and industry, to inform and lead public opinion, and to furnish that check upon government which no constitution has ever been able to provide.

Colonel Robert R. McCormick

Colonel Robert R. McCormick and his cousin Joseph M. Patterson were co-editors and co-publishers at the time of the buildings' construction. Each had an office on the 24th floor, each had a beautiful view, and each had a hidden escape hatch.

Paranoia cha-cha-cha.

If I hadn't seen it myself, I wouldn't believe the story. The hatch in what was once Patterson's office still exists. In the above pictures, you'll notice a "closet" that is nearly invisible when the door is closed. Inside the "closet" you'll find a super secret door that leads to a narrow stair case ending at the no-longer-open-to-the-public observation deck.

But the escape hatches weren't the only design eccentricities. In the Colonel's office there are four doors and only one door knob. Legend has it, the Colonel wanted to make sure when you left a meeting you were leaving on his terms. Apparently there was a button on his desk that unlatched one of the doors and allowed people to enter and exit through it. And I thought I was a control freak!

But he was a control freak with a killer view.

"Damn it feels good to be a gangsta."

All eccentricities aside, the Colonel was responsible for commissioning an iconic Chicago skyscraper. And he was proud of it. He made no secret of the fact that the building cost $8.5 million. (...again, in 1920s $$$!!!) At the time of it's completion, only the Eiffel Tower in Paris and three skyscrapers in New York City exceeded its overall height. Eighty something years later, it remains one of the quintessential Chicago buildings.